Superhero games have been one of the most popular subgenres when it comes to action games, and the last few years have been kind to us fans when it comes to unforgettable superhero experiences. The Insomniac-developed Spider-Man games are easily some of the most mechanically polished experiences of recent memory, and have proven to be one of the best renditions of the friendly neighborhood webhead.
Apart from that, there are also a bunch of upcoming superhero games looming over the horizon – including but not limited to Marvel’s Wolverine, EA Motive’s Iron Man game, Wonder Woman, and Cliffhanger Studio’s Black Panther. But another superhero game that many might not know much about is UNRESTRICTED, and that’s a shame because it looks really impressive from a gameplay standpoint. With this feature, we will be diving deep into this game, breaking down its many aspects, and nailing down what exactly makes it tick.
UNRESTRICTED is currently in development at Indie-Us Games – a small development studio that brought us TrinityS, a top-down action game where players fight increasingly tough waves of monsters and bosses, which nets them better loot and lets them take on even tougher fights. Despite being in early access, TrinityS received favorable critical reception upon launch, and many of those action game learnings seem to have been applied to UNRESTRICTED – which is easily the most ambitious project from this rather humble development team.
UNRESTRICTED puts players in the shoes of an unnamed college student who gains some incredible powers after coming into contact with a meteorite. And when an intergalactic threat starts to reign terror upon another alien planet, you must answer the call of duty and become the hero of the hour. As you can already imagine, UNRESTRICTED seems to be pretty light when it comes to the narrative, and while that might be a good thing for a game so focused on action – an engaging story is definitely important when it comes to motivating players to see a game through to the end. As such, we do hope that the narrative gets fleshed out as we move closer to release, and we get to meet some memorable characters or witness some important story revelations during this journey.
But when it comes to gameplay, developer Indie-Us Games seems to have brought its A-game to the field – and it shows. As can be deduced from the available footage, the moment-to-moment gameplay revolves around defeating waves of enemies in large arenas by using all sorts of acrobatic attacks and the many superpowers available at your disposal, all while looking like an unstoppable force of nature.
The game takes place in an open-world setting with a vast array of locales available to explore, including but not limited to lush green forests, industrial townscapes, and even underwater areas. The world will obviously be pretty large in terms of square footing, and our superhero has the ability to zoom across these environments at incredibly high speeds which looks absolutely slick in action. The animations are spot on, and there is a good sense of heft to the flight movements which very few games have managed to nail down. It also manages to convey a sense of sheer momentum through the use of wind trails that emerge behind your character while in flight, and it all comes together to make for a system that will be immensely fun to engage with.
But zipping through environments will only get you so far, as there are deadly enemies waiting to pummel you down with hard-hitting strikes of their own. Thankfully, the game presents players with a vast array of options when it comes to taking down enemies with style. You can use your standard punches and kicks to dish out physical damage, but you can also use ethereal powers like dashes and beam blasts that unleash devastating elemental damage to your adversaries.
The combat looks absolutely brutal, and you can chain all of these moves together to create all sorts of combos that not only look cool but also take out a significant part of these mutants’ health bars. You could start out with a few punches, chain that into a dash to send an enemy flying into the ground, and then follow that up with a beam blast while it’s knocked down. Or you could also throw large blocks of concrete upon your enemies, and then follow that up with a dash and punches to deal some serious damage. UNRESTRICTED also features destructible environments, and generous amounts of smoke and debris are accompanied with each slam – which makes it all look incredibly realistic and impactful.
Boss fights are also looking to be one of the highlights of the experience, as players will be using all the techniques and strategies to take down hulking beasts that only give limited windows of opportunities to attack. The gameplay showcases our superhero using his flight powers to dodge the boss’s attacks, and then he follows that up by throwing heavy blocks of concrete from the surrounding buildings to stun the enemy for a precious few seconds. The final release will most likely have even tougher encounters, and we’re really excited to see what’s in store.
As for player progression, UNRESTRICTED gives players the ability to absorb special powers from defeated enemies – which can then be used against the opposition to take them down in creative ways. As such, you can expect to constantly be showered with new abilities and skills that will further empower your character and make you a force to be reckoned with. The ultimate goal of this game is to become powerful in all aspects, but you’ll have to overcome many tough challenges and boss battles before you finally get to realize that power fantasy.
We should also take a brief moment to talk about the visuals, which might not be up to snuff in terms of raw fidelity levels – but they certainly look good enough. You won’t get to see a ton of impressive lighting effects or ray tracing in UNRESTRICTED, but the developers have made some smart choices that make the visuals pop out. Character models are large and have distinct telegraphs for attacks, while interactable objects are covered in bright colors like pink and purple. Readability is one of the most important things when it comes to fast-paced action games like this one, and Indie-Us Games seems to have done a fabulous job in this regard.
Switching gears over to the topic of release dates, UNRESTRICTED unfortunately doesn’t have a release date at the moment. According to the developers, the game is still in the early stages of development – so it’s going to take a while before fans get to experience this promising project. Judging from the available information and the current state of the project, a late 2024 or early 2025 release seems like a fair guess – though things could certainly change in the near future. As such, it’s best to keep your expectations in check.
In conclusion, UNRESTRICTED definitely has a lot of potential thanks to its spectacular gameplay – and it could most certainly make a name for itself if the developers capitalize on its merits. Here’s hoping this ends up being the case.
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.